Akeldama
by Verfassergeist
Summary: Sometimes, the dead don't stay dead.Chapters one and two; are prologues to set up the story, and to see if there is any interest. If there is, more comes out! DEAD
1. Prologue, part one

The Prologue…

_**The Gospel Of Matthew, Chapter 27, Verses 1-8**_

Now when morning was come, all the chief priests and the elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death: and they bound him, and led him away, and delivered him up to Pilate the governor.

Then Judas, who betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying,

_"I have sinned in that I betrayed innocent blood."_

But they said,

_"What is that to us? See thou __to it__."_

And he cast down the pieces of silver into the sanctuary, and departed; and he went away and hanged himself. And the chief priests took the pieces of silver, and said,

_ "It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, since it is the price of blood." _

And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter's field, to bury strangers in. Wherefore that field was called, the field of blood, unto this day.


	2. Prologue, part two

Inside all of us, deep down, farther than most care to look, is something we all revile. And for some, it is _real_. 

Our world, our reality, our life, is Swiss-cheesed with lies, distrust and hate. Darkness cloaks our world, metaphorically, and _genuinely_.

Forces are marshalling. Ideas, blooming. Emotions, harnessed. Barriers, taken down; gates, never meant to be unlocked againare _opened_.

Long forgotten nightmares creep out of the dusty history of life, and replant themselves.

Whilst heroes and gods slumber for a little longer under hills, and the day turns to dusk and nightfall, we must look to ourselves and unlikely allies to rebuild what was lost.

The fences of our world are eroding from within, and the time has come, for the world to decide to change the landscape into an akeldama or not.


	3. Chapter 3

A solitary guard stood on the ramparts of the outer walls of Konohagakure no Sato. He closed his eyes, savoring the darkness. The sun was setting, and the section of the wall he was guarding happened to be facing the now blood red sun. When he opened his eyes, his heart stopped.

Literally.

The guard looked down and found a kunai buried into his chest, furiously spurting blood over his clothes and the wall. He looked back up to find his attacker, waiting patiently. 

"Why…" the guard croaked out.

"For twelve years of…" 

But by that point, the guard was dead.

The intruder walked over the freshly dead body, paused to look at it, spat, and vaulted over the wall to the apartment district of Konoha. 

And at the murder scene, a shuriken impaled a white card to wall, fluttering in the evening wind.

The sun had just set.

Nightfall

Morino Ibiki rose from his crouch, clutching the white card in one hand, his brow (or what was left of them) furrowed.

"Twelve years…" he read. 

He closed his eyes, as he stood up slowly. He opened them to chaos. Camera flashes exploding like lightning. Konoha Military police scurrying everywhere, the occasional ANBU agent leaping through the trees or carefully guarding the crime scene. Ibiki closed his eyes, and ignored the sounds of murder scene.

"I remember why I got into interrogation- to avoid this" he thought. The only reason why he was here was because of the mysterious note. And to "unlock" the mind of the freak who did this.

He became aware of someone asking for him.

"Sir…Sir…?"

Ibiki opened his eyes to find an ANBU agent (boar mask) standing patiently in front of him, and he held a stack of paper extended in one hand.

"Sir?" 

"Sorry. Just thinking." Ibiki said while shaking his head, as if trying to empty his head of weariness.

"Think about this." The agent said with a barely discernable chuckle. "It's the guard's service record and basic info."

Ibiki flipped through it pausing here and there. Finally at the last page, he stopped. The guard had a history of minor criminal infractions, mostly public drunkenness. The last infraction was "Assault with battery" on a child. When Ibiki read the name of the victim, he closed his eyes tightly and thought "Of all the people in the world, it HAD to been him!" It was Naruto Uzimaki.

The boy had a history associated with of assaults. The Fourth's wishes, had, of course gone unnoticed, and many a prank and beating had been administered. ANBU had always stepped in, quietly and pointedly telling the person to never look at the Uzimaki boy again, lest Ibiki Morino pay a visit. Naruto, after a free meal of choice (always the Ichiraku Ramen Bar) was administered to his wounds and his memory altered to not remember it, lest the demon within getting out. Ibiki, deep down had always had this night as one of his worst nightmares, second to…that memory.

Ibiki kept his eyes close, and slowly counted to ten in his head. It was supposed to calm his mind, but in the end, it just pissed him off. 

He finally opened his eyes and spoke. 

"Bring in the patrols and clean up this place. Wake up the captains and tell them we have a 'Code Black' and also a 'Mascal.' Send out patrols to houses with offenses of 'Code Wish.' We're going to the Uzimaki house." 

Ibiki jumped over the roofs of Konoha, only coming down to regain momentum. A squad of ANBU followed behind him, cloaks billowing almost malevolently. Military Police had cleared the streets, so progress wouldn't be hampered. 

Ibiki felt the subtle tendrils of success began to creep into his mind. This would all turn out to be a horrible misunderstanding; they wouldn't find an enraged child overflowing with rage and chakra. He would go home and sleep this horrible day off till noon of the next week. 

Something caught his eye. Ibiki motioned for the squad to land and investigate.

A figure was walking down the street, coincidently the one with the Uzimaki living on it. The squad landed silently around the person. A loose, tattered cloak covered the person, and he had his head bowed and covered. 

"Remove your cloak!" one of the ANBU agents said.

The person didn't move remove his cloak, and only stood there. 

An ANBU agent moved to remove the cloak when the person moved his cloak, revealing a short sword.

The ANBU flew back and drew numerous weapons. 

"Possession of weapons is illegal unless you have a license! Show us your license!"

"My quarrel is not with you. My debt is to be paid tonight; twelve years overdue," came a low growl. "Time is slipping away, time that cannot be regained once lost. Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the He is with me!"

"Debt!" thought Ibiki, thinking furiously. 


	4. Chapter 4

**_AN: I see hits but not reviews...WTF...If I need to improve or if I have errors let me know!! _**

**_OR if you want to beta; that's cool too. Please review! (I hate to beg though...)_**

"I intend to settle some family issues with Uzimaki Naruto. If you get in the way, it makes no difference to me. But you can't beat me, just a little notice." came the low growling from the tattered cloak.

"Too bad you messed with the wrong people" said one of the ANBU agents. "Just at the wrong place at the wrong time. And since you ARE messing around with Uzimaki Naruto, per the Fourth's wishes, we allowed to use force to remove you as deemed necessary. I think it's to the afterlife for you."

"The afterlife" snorted the cloak. "I hope you have made peace with the gods."

A chuckle ran through the group.

"And I hope you can kill me. Death would be a relief compared to what I have to do."

" 'Ask and ye shall receive, good sir.' " came from one of the agents.

"Gladly." Said the cloak, throwing back the voluminous hood, and drawing numerous shurikens.

The ANBU all drew swords from their backs and settled into defensive positions.

"Ibiki, I think its time you leave. We'll keep this jokester entertained. Get Naruto and find Kakashi." Said the captain of the ANBU squad.

Ibiki turn and ran from the uneasy and soon violent standoff. He didn't look back.

"Well…That clears that item off the list. Now…Where were we? Ah yes! Here!"

The intruder threw shurikens around him in a cloud. The agents blocked most of the shuriken, but those were inconsequential. What were more concerning were the intruder's hands. Flicking and folding through different hand seals, the ANBU agents could feel the slight pressure on the air as chakra was being compressed for some attack. The intruder finished and stuck his right hand into the air. Pitch black mist spiraled off and floated off into the atmosphere, almost harmlessly.

Almost.

Just as the last of the mist disappeared from the hand, fierce winds began to buffet the four ANBU agents. Thunder rolled ominously and lightning ripped and cracked above the village. Rain began to fall, softly at first, then falling as if there had been a drought.

The intruder pulled out a piece of paper. On it was the symbol of lightning, and it had a summoning seal around it. The intruder rolled up it up, placed it in-between a single seal, and vanished in a flurry of sheets of paper.

ANBU, meanwhile were a bit of guard as papers swirled around them.

"What the hell is this? " An ANBU agent roared above the raging storm.

"Some kind of genjutsu?" one said uncertainly.

"Release on three! One! Two! Three!"

The agents built up chakra, and released through their chakra nodes. Thunder roared even louder and the papers were, unfortunately still there. An agent grabbed one of the swirling papers in a fist.

"It's just paper! It's just…"

At point, lightning struck him, sending the three other agents flying through the empty streets, the sheets of paper flowing around them and settling on their stunned and electrified bodies.

Ibiki dashed threw the pouring rain, becoming totally soaked in no time. He made it to the apartment complex, and before he went through the door, he glanced out at the street. Just turning the corner, were sheets of paper. Ibiki closed the door behind him, shuffling his feet on the rug placed exactly for this reason. After cleaning off his boots, he checked Uzimaki's room number.

Bad luck.

Uzimaki's room was at the very top of the building. Cursing violently, he sprinted towards the stairs, skipping steps as he went up the steps. He climbed the seemingly endless stairs; he depressed the call button on his ear radio.

"This is Ibiki! Requesting backup! Squad two currently missing-in-action! Over!'

The radio returned a string of static unlike the usual prompt reply of the radio operator. Ibiki clicked it off and continued up the stairs. He finally got to the top of the building and ran to the door. He saw light coming out from the doors cracks. Ibiki backed up several feet at sprinted at the door, slamming into it and successfully knocking down the door. He found the intruder sitting in a chair, directly across from Naruto, who was sitting on the edge of his bed, twitching and desperately trying to stay awake.

"Evening…" Naruto said, stifling a yawn, and failing miserably at.

"Evening." Said the cloaked figure in the chair.

Ibiki sighed and pulled a chair out, and plopped it across from the stranger.

"I give up. I know its going to be long night; I never was cut out for combat; and I know there is a story here as to why you are here."

"That's a great start. And just for good behavior, and not trying to kill me, you'll get a name, at the very least out of this crummy night." The cloak said, sarcasm leaking through. "My name is Hoduku Denshi. And I have come for Naruto."

"You want Naruto?"

"Right."

"Why?"

"He needs training."

"He's going a trip with…" Ibiki stopped suddenly.

"With whom?"

"Jiraya; he's one of the…"

Denshi cut him off again. "I know who Jiraya is. He knows where to find me if there is a problem."

He rose from the chair and turned to Naruto. "Pack your things. We're leaving."

Ibiki stood up quickly. "And where will you be going?" he asked.

"Suna" Denshi said with a smile.


	5. Chapter 5

**_Sorry for the belated update. Summer has whizzing by me. I changed the prologue, so you might understand the strange name. _**

**_Another thing: You find errors, plot holes, or other misshaps, let me know. You want to beta this? Let me know. _**

**_The usual discaimer: I don't own anything, 'cept the clothes on my back. I think._**

**_Chapter 5_**

"Suna? Why would you go there?"

"The entire country is a desert. And if we can find the child named…"

"Gaara…" Finished Ibiki. "Gaara is the Kazekage now, and won't be able to offer Naruto diplomatic immunity or protection, because of his relationship with him."

Denshi sighed suddenly, his face becoming immensely sad. He turned to go back into Naruto's apartment, but was stopped by Ibiki.

"Wait. Earlier you said something on the streets. Something about each man to himself, and somebody being with you. What did you mean by that?"

"What if I told you, that Naruto has the power to completely change the world? Really, truly change the world, in such a way, the whole fate of the world hangs in balance of his decisions? You would call me a liar, right? Naruto will change the world, and everybody will need to make the crucial decision to stay or go against him."

Ibiki looked doubtful. "I could understand that. His father…"

"I know about the father. His sins have become Naruto's …and who is with me?" Denshi asked sadly.

"Imagine you love someone so dearly, that you trade your soul to keep that person alive, no matter what it costs. I paid the ultimate price, so that others might live. And I now collect the debt that all men pay, because of it."

"I don't believe you on that. If I think you are working for Him, what is stopping you from punching my ticker?" Ibiki said slowly.

"You have a higher calling Ibiki. More than a fisherman of minds. Put it all together, trust your instincts, and go with your decision." Denshi urged him. "The dead won't stay dead for much longer, and divided we will fall. That much is certain."

By the end of this very cryptic conversation, Naruto had finished his packing. Denshi sealed his luggage into a scroll (which disappeared into Naruto's pocket), and dashed down the stairs, Naruto and Ibiki in tow. Naruto and Ibiki found Denshi standing in the pouring rain, thunder roaring above head, and lightning snapping and cauterizing the pitch black clouds above ahead.

"Naruto! Come with me!" Denshi roared above the rain.

Naruto dashed out into the rain, instantly becoming soaked. He stood by Denshi, waiting.

"Ibiki! Remember your purpose! Remember divided we fall! And I'm not against you; just being held captive!"

Ibiki stepped out into the rain, almost in a trance, his hand outstretched.

"No!" Ibiki shouted as they disappeared in a grey cloud of smoke.

Ibiki looked up into the clouds, raining sluicing into the scars on his face.

"What does it all mean?" He said slowly. "What does it mean?"

Then, in a flash, everything made sense, as he was hit by lightning.

The world lit up for the briefest moment for Ibiki, and became dark.

The next morning

Ibiki groaned as he sat up. The bed he was lying in, wasn't his, as were the clothes. He opened his eyes, only to wake up to a hospital bed.

"What happened?" he mumbled to himself. He looked down finding a generic hospital slip, and electrodes tapped all over his body.

"What the hell?" he asked with a little more conviction.

He ripped them off, switching off the EKG machine that started to blare. Ibiki staggered off the bed, only to stumble to the door frame, to meet a two doctors and numerous nurses.

"Why am I here?" Ibiki snarled at the nearest doctor.

"You were struck by lightning, Ibiki-san. You need to lie down."

"I don't." mumbled Ibiki.

"Yes, you do." The doctor said fimly, taking Ibiki by the arm, and attempting to direct him to the bed.

"I don't!" Ibiki snarled, shoving the doctor away, and ran to the door. He dashed past the other doctor and nurses' surprised faces , and made three feet of progress before he collapsed.


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry, for the long update. To make it up, here is a longest chapter to date. _Please read and review. I need responses...I don't care if you flame!_**

And just like that, Uzimaki Naruto vanished. His room was found completely spotless upon inspection days, unlike the usual clutter and chaos. All of his clothes were found clean, pressed off and hung up in his closet; so clean, they appeared to be brand-new. His weapons and other gear were found in a draw, rust free and brand-new. No food was found in the pantry or his fridge.

Ibiki sat in his hospital bed, a blanket pulled up to his waist. A large bandage, put there by a nurse, after his mad attempt for freedom, covered his scarred head.

_Mad attempt indeed. _Ibiki thought darkly.

The remains of a meager hospital breakfast sat on a tray across his lap, beside a pad of paper, filled with his handwriting. On the bedside table, flowers and get-well cards overflowed to floor in bright and cute abundance. A chair rested by the door, on the seat was a small bag.

Today was freedom day--supposedly. Today, he would leave this forsaken, backless hospital, and begin his unofficial job, one of figuring out what Uzimaki Naruto was doing. He obviously wasn't picking flowers in the fields.

Ibiki looked over the list from Naruto's apartment. He, the ANBU interrogator of legend, was still in a hospital, felled a _mere_ lightning bolt, much to his chagrin. Ibiki considered himself to quite healthy, even by ninja standards.

Torture_ is_ a marathon event, after all. The human mind, Ibiki learned early on in his career, was amazing at resisting attacks at it.

_The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. _Ibiki mused.

Even the ANBU tactical squad that Ibiki had tailed, and subsequently struck by lightning, was released yesterday.

He was at the point, that the next doctor that came in reassuring him his release from this hellhole would meet a particularly nasty genjutsu reserved for occasional hardened criminal.

While Ibiki mused about torturing doctors, one walked in.

_Perfect! _Ibiki screamed in his head.

He bent down to check his charts and scribbled some notes.

_Wait for it…waaaiiiit for it…_

Ibiki looked up from the notes and opened his mouth.

"Hey…Doc!"

"Ibiki-san." The doctor said without looking from the chart. "You can be released today, after the debriefing by Dr. Tsunade. After that, you can collect you personal effects and leave us."

The sarcasm in the last statement was palpable.

"What makes you say that?" asked Ibiki, taken aback, his brilliant planned mental attack crumbling like wet sand in a hurricane.

"It is not secret that you want to leave. You talk in your sleep about killing us and you tried to escape before you were healed."

"I tried to escape because I have an investigation that grows colder by the day!" shot back Ibiki, secretly stunned at the accusation.

"How far did you get after you left the bed?" asked the doctor angrily, his face and voice rising.

"I know my limits!" roared Ibiki. "How many bolts of lightning hit my team? _One? Two_?"

"At least two per person," came a new voice. "But that's not the real reason you are still here."

The doctor spun around furiously to see the person entering the private battle between a breaker of men, and a healer of one.

He came face-to-face with Tsunade, the fifth Hokage.

"You may leave us, Dr. Huyi." She said tiredly. Tsunade was covered in a hospital operating slip, spotted with blood.

Ibiki raised one eyebrow at her. "Rough day?" he asked once Dr. Huyi left the room.

"You know; the usual," she said with a sigh. She walked over to the single chair, sweeped off the bag and plopped down.

"I don't. I stick to torture." Ibiki began.

"…And I to fixing people." Tsunade finished with wry smile.

The close relationship of the two friends wasn't common knowledge, but it was inevitable as Ibiki would break people to the point a master healer was needed. Eventually the two developed a close professional relationship, close enough to joke and complete each others sentences.

She pulled out a bottle of sake and toasted Ibiki.

"To your health." She drank a gulp and stared at him, her eyes momentarily unfocusing, as alcohol rushed through her blood. "Ah…much better. I've been waiting for that all day…"

"I never figured out how you did that," Ibiki observed. "Clean out the alcohol before t reached your brain."

"Special Sannin secret," Tsuande remarked.

"Know anything that would help me get out of here any quicker? I _feel_ healthy," affirmed Ibiki.

"That remains to be seen. I'm going to cut to the ugly chase, Ibiki. The lightning that hit you was different from the lightning that hit your squad."

"Is something in that drink?" Ibiki asked pointedly.

"I'm completely serious. When you first came in, you had unusual chakra burns all over your head and upper torso. The ANBU squad, on the other hand, had thermal burns on their chest and torso. Their clothes were burnt off their bodies or fused onto the skin. Their ceramic masks were…reforged; I think the only way to describe them, into hunks. They were lucky to be alive by the time we got to them." Tsunade counted off her fingers. "Your clothes weren't melted or burned, which was my first clue that the lightning wasn't natural. Second, your shoes weren't blown off your feet, nor did you have any burns on your feet. Third, your chakra network, Ibiki, was a complete mess."

"What _are_ you talking about?" Ibiki asked the Sannin seriously.

Concern crossed Tsunade's face.

"Ibiki, I don't know how to break this to you, but…"

"But _what_?" asked Ibiki, as a feeling of sinking slowly filled his stomach.

"The doctors think, Ibiki, that you will probably never mold chakra again."

Naruto

While Ibiki tried to get over his probable-career ending lightning strike, Naruto and Denshi ran in the trees to the borders of the Fire Country. The surrounding forest around Konoha extended for miles providing a comfortable buffer from the world. Eventually it ended to grasslands, mountains, volcanoes, and hills. Not to mention foreign countries that hate Leaf shinobi.

"Uh, Denshi?" asked Naruto hesitantly, as he slowed down.

"Yes Naruto?" Denshi replied.

"When do I start learning? I mean, I'm not impatient, but I have someone I need…" Naruto explained quickly.

"To bring back?" finished Denshi. He stopped beside Naruto, and looked down on the genin.

"Naruto, I _too_ tried to bring somebody back from an unimaginable place. I failed. And because of this, I was forced to take you."

"Take me? You mean I'm not going to be trained?" asked a very puzzled Naruto.

"You'll be trained," laughed Denshi. "It just won't be in an orthodox way."

"When could we begin?" Naruto asked excitedly. "What kinda of cool techniques are you going to teach me?"

"When we leave the Fire country borders. Anything before that, and ANBU can find us. Within this country, they have unlimited jurisdiction and can arrest me, and more importantly, you, Naruto. I suspect that we have trackers already on us, as we speak."

"What country are we going to, then?" asked Naruto hopefully.

"I have some places in the north that can hide us for awhile. After a short period, we can start your training. Six more days, and then you can begin. For now, how about I fill you in about my history while we take a break."

Ibiki

"What do you mean I can't bend chakra?" asked Ibiki, his voice dangerously calm.

"When you were hit by the lightning," Tsunade explained nervously, "You unconsciously absorbed it through the chakra network. The result of it scarred the network disrupting it. Right now, you have a trickle from your coils to the heart and body, which is enough to sustain life for you. If you try to bend chakra, you will die, and even I can't help you." Tsunade said grimly.

"Is there any hope for recovery?" asked Ibiki, his face downcast.

"I'd like to think so. Your body should bounce back, maybe after a few days. For now, stay at your house."

"What about Naruto?"

"I assigned a team of trackers to find him. Yesterday they reported two tracks heading for the northern border."

"What, Waterfall or Earth?" asked Ibiki, referring to the country.

"ANBU seems to think so," agreed Tsunade. "But they think that Naruto also might be going for the Lightning country or Grass. Heaven forbid Rain or Water. And we both know he won't go to Gaara." Tsunade listed.

"In that case, you might want to put out a missing-nin notice to the hidden villages. Offer a reward or something."

"But if Akatsuki gets a whiff, the continent will be crawling with guys in black muumuus. Then we lose Naruto," pointed out Tsunade. "And with Jiraya gone on a retreat, he can't provide backup."

"Stalemate, then. We let Naruto go for now. When I get better, I'll start to track him," promised Ibiki.

"Very well. You have my permission, Ibiki."

Naruto

"Where to begin?" asked Denshi musingly. "It's such a strange story; I can hardly believe it myself."

"Start when you were a little kid?" suggested Naruto.

"Right," approved Denshi. "When I was a little child, long ago, the world was a different place. Armies were constantly roaming the world. The gods…Ah, the gods…The gods were actually there. They meddled in human affairs. Those were the days…When I was your age, Naruto; my father gave me my inheritance. He had stolen it from a scroll A powerful tattoo, that contained an infinite amount of weapons and unusual jutsus, various pacts with creatures not from this world, and quite possibly the most powerful weapon on this planet…All of it, sealed onto my arm at the age of thirteen. The price I paid for this tattoo was incalculable. Anybody I love would die." Denshi paused to look at Naruto.

"So…you still have it, right?" asked the genin nervously, glancing at Denshi's right arm.

"I do," he replied. He rolled up the arm of the cloak, revealing a tanned arm, with a white lotus flower tattooed on his arm.

"It looks…real…," Naruto said in awe.

"But here's the cool part." Denshi prompted. He touched, and black shapes began to cover his arm, until barely any skin showed. He touched the flower again, and the shapes receded.

"What was that?" asked Naruto.

"The result of a curse. I'll explain later. So, here I was, thirteen, and juiced with enough trouble to shake the world. It took three years of practice and careful mediation to discover the secrets of the White Lotus Flower Curse."

"Wait…it's a curse?" questioned Naruto.

"I told you that explain that," Denshi told him, exasperated. Annoyed, he continued. "So. three years later, I come back. I learn that my dad had die in combat, and my mother had been taken away as a prisoner. I tracked my mother down to a warlord, who refused to return her. I told him I would kill his entire army. He laughed and the guards ran me off. The following week, his army marched through a mountain pass, where I waited. I unsealed the Lotus, and summoned a cloud of arrows. Within seconds, the army was decimated. By a stroke of sheer luck, the warlord was unhurt. I killed him by drawing out his life force, slowly and carefully enough to watch him writhe and writher in pain. It was all for nothing I learned, because my mother had died around one year ago, as the warlord told me with his last dying breath. My slaughter was for nothing. Nevertheless, I still killed the warlord. And when he died, a shinigami appeared to me. He charged me with collecting the soul of the boy of prophecy, and anyone he killed; until then, paradise would be denied to me. That was over one hundred years ago. Since then, I haven't died, hungered or thirsted."

Jiraya

Deep in the heart of the wandering mountain, Jiraya mediated. The disturbance caused by the disappearance of Naruto had forced him to retreat for guidance from the toad sages. At the current moment, he waited patiently for an audience with the great toad sage, the one that had given him his mission in life.

A tiny toad hopped up to Jiraya, who sat with his legs crossed next to the fountain of the toad oil.

"Little Jiraya, the great toad sage will see now."

"About time," the Sannin mumbled. "I was starting to get a crick in my neck."

He made his way to the chamber where a huge and equally old toad sat perched on a pedestal.

"Little Jiraya, I have pondered your hindrance in your journey," it said slowly.

"And?" pressed Jiraya.

"Let the boy go. He needs to learn," it croaked.

"Learn? Learn what? I would have taught him everything I know!" exclaimed Jiraya.

"He must fulfill his destiny, and complete the destiny of the Man with the Lotus."

"The Man with the Lotus? Who the hell is that?" asked Jiraya, perplexed at the strange prophecy.

"There is a man, with a lotus tattooed on his arm. He will give the spirit within Naruto the tools it needs to be free. You must stop Naruto before the world's balance is tipped. If Naruto succeeds, the world will become drenched in the blood of the innocent and wicked alike," the toad sage said cryptically.

"You must tell me more!" pleaded Jiraya.

"Very well," the great sage said. "The dead will not stay dead for much longer. Go to your enemies for help. Look to the past for help. Look to the dead for help."

"My infinite thanks," Jiraya said airily. _Wonderful,_ he thought. _Enigmas in side of enigmas._

He turned his back and began molding chakra to teleport.

"Jiraya?" the giant toad spoke.

"Yes?" Jiraya asked as he turned back around.

"Seek out the man who breaks the spirit of others. He will lead you to Naruto."

With that, the toad sage closed his eyes. Jiraya bowed his in thanks, and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Six days later

Ibiki left his home in high spirits. He was away from work, and only one thing mattered at this point. Finding out where Naruto went. It was strange really, Ibiki reflected. The village that hated his entire existence was scrambling to find him. Ibiki turned around to find Jiraya running to catch up him.

"Jiraya-sama… What do I owe this pleasure?" observed Ibiki.

"Hey, do you have a moment? I need to talk with you."

"I'd rather not. I have important business with…," Ibiki began impatiently.

"With Naruto? I know all about it, believe it or not."

"So you let Naruto be taken? And you didn't tell anyone!" roared Ibiki as he seized the front of Jiraya's robe.

"What are you talking about? I learned about it from Tsunade!"

"Oh." Ibiki let go of Jiraya. "I guess we're in this together."


End file.
